Chapter 10: Project Communications Management

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Chapter 10Project Communications Management
Information Technology Project Management
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Learning Objectives

• Understand the importance of good communications
  in projects.
• Understand project communications management
  processes
• Explain the elements of project communications
  planning.
• Describe various methods for distributing project
  information and the advantages and disadvantages
  of each, discuss the importance of addressing
  individual communication needs, and calculate the
  number of communications channels in a project.

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Learning Objectives (contd)

• Understand how the main outputs of performance
  reporting help stakeholders stay informed about
  project resources.
• Recognize the importance of good communications
  management for stakeholder relationships and for
  resolving issues.
• List various methods for improving project
  communications, such as managing conflicts,
  running effective meetings, using e-mail and
  other technologies effectively, and using
  templates.
• Describe how software can enhance project
  communications management.

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Importance of Good Communications

• The greatest threat to many projects is a failure
  to communicate.
• Our culture does not portray IT professionals as
  being good communicators.
• Research shows that IT professionals must be able
  to communicate effectively to succeed in their
  positions.
• Strong verbal skills are a key factor in career
  advancement for IT professionals.

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Project CommunicationsManagement Processes

• Communications planning Determining the
  information and communications needs of the
  stakeholders.
• Information distribution Making needed
  information available to project stakeholders in
  a timely manner.
• Performance reporting Collecting and
  disseminating performance information, including
  status reports, progress measurement, and
  forecasting.
• Managing stakeholders Managing communications to
  satisfy the needs and expectations of project
  stakeholders and to resolve issues.

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Communications Planning

• Every project should include some type of
  communications management plan, a document that
  guides project communications.
• Creating a stakeholder analysis for project
  communications also aids in communications
  planning.

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Communications ManagementPlan Contents

• Stakeholder communications requirements.
• Information to be communicated, including format,
  content, and level of detail.
• The people who will receive the information and
  who will produce it.
• Suggested methods or technologies for conveying
  the information.

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Communications ManagementPlan Contents (contd)

• Frequency of communication.
• Escalation procedures for resolving issues.
• Revision procedures for updating the
  communications management plan.
• A glossary of common terminology.

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Table 10-1. Sample Stakeholder Analysis for
Project Communications
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Information Distribution

• Getting the right information to the right people
  at the right time and in a useful format is just
  as important as developing the information in the
  first place.
• Important considerations include
• Using technology to enhance information
  distribution.
• Formal and informal methods for distributing
  information. Ex Sponsors prefers weekly coffee
  meetings

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Distributing Information in an Effective and
Timely Manner

• Dont bury crucial information. Ex SW with new
  features
• Dont be afraid to report bad information. Ex
  Delays in project schedules.
• Oral communication via meetings and informal
  talks helps bring important informationgood and
  badout into the open.

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Importance of Face-to-Face Communication

• Research says that in a face-to-face interaction
• 58 percent of communication is through body
  language.
• 35 percent of communication is through how the
  words are said.
• 7 percent of communication is through the content
  or words that are spoken.
• Pay attention to more than just the actual words
  someone is saying.
• A persons tone of voice and body language say a
  lot about how he or she really feels.

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Encouraging More Face-to-Face Interactions

• Short, frequent meetings are often very effective
  in IT projects.
• Stand-up meetings force people to focus on what
  they really need to communicate.
• Some companies have policies preventing the use
  of e-mail between certain hours or even entire
  days of the week.
• Live video is a modern medium for sending
  information. Microsoft says that one in every
  five face-to-face meetings can be replaced with
  Web conferencing tools, and they estimate it will
  save 70 million in reduced travel in one year
  alone.

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Table 10-2. Media Choice Table
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Understanding Group and Individual Communication
Needs

• People are not interchangeable parts.
• Sometimes, you cannot assume that a task
  originally scheduled to take two months of one
  persons time can be done in one month by two
  people.
• Nine women cannot produce a baby in one month!

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Personal Preferences Affect Communication Needs

• Introverts like more private communications,
  while extroverts like to discuss things in
  public.
• Intuitive people like to understand the big
  picture, while sensing people need step-by-step
  details.
• Thinkers want to know the logic behind decisions,
  while feeling people want to know how something
  affects them personally.
• Judging people are driven to meet deadlines while
  perceiving people need more help in developing
  and following plans.

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Other Communication Considerations

• Rarely does the receiver interpret a message
  exactly as the sender intended.
• Geographic location and cultural background
  affect the complexity of project communications.
• Different working hours
• Language barriers
• Different cultural norms

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Determining the Number of Communications Channels

• As the number of people involved increases, the
  complexity of communications increases because
  there are more communications channels or
  pathways through which people can communicate.
• Number of communications channels n(n-1)
• 2 where n is the number of
  people involved.

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Figure 10-1. The Impact of the Number of People
on Communications Channels
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Performance Reporting

• Performance reporting keeps stakeholders informed
  about how resources are being used to achieve
  project objectives.
• Status reports describe where the project stands
  at a specific point in time. (in terms of time,
  cost and scope)
• Progress reports describe what the project team
  has accomplished during a certain period of time.
• Forecasts predict future project status and
  progress based on past information and trends.

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Managing Stakeholders

• Project managers must understand and work with
  various stakeholders.
• Need to find out a way to identify and resolve
  issues.
• Two important tools include
• Expectations management matrix
• Issue log

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Table 10-3. Expectations Management Matrix
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Table 10-4. Issue Log
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Suggestions for Improving Project Communications

• Manage conflicts effectively.
• Develop better communication skills.
• Run effective meetings.
• Use e-mail effectively.
• Use templates for project communications.

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Conflict Handling Modes

1. Confrontation Directly face a conflict using a
   problem-solving approach.
2. Compromise Use a give-and-take approach.
3. Smoothing De-emphasize (avoids) areas of
   difference and emphasize areas of agreement.
4. Forcing The win-lose approach. Competitive and
   autocratic managers exert their viewpoints.
5. Withdrawal Retreat or withdraw from an actual or
   potential disagreement.

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Conflict Can Be Good

• Conflict often produces important results, such
  as new ideas, better alternatives, and motivation
  to work harder and more collaboratively.
• Groupthink Conformance to the values or ethical
  standards of a group. Groupthink can develop if
  there are no conflicting viewpoints.
• Research suggests that task-related conflict
  often improves team performance, but emotional
  conflict often depresses team performance.

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Developing Better Communication Skills

• Companies and formal degree programs for IT
  professionals often neglect the importance of
  speaking, writing, and listening skills.
• As organizations become more global, they realize
  they must invest in ways to improve communication
  with people from different countries and
  cultures.
• It needs leadership to improve communication. Top
  management must be a good example in
  communication.

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Running Effective Meetings

• Determine if a meeting can be avoided.
• Define the purpose and intended outcome of the
  meeting.
• Determine who should attend the meeting.
• Provide an agenda to participants before the
  meeting.
• Prepare handouts and visual aids, and make
  logistical arrangements ahead of time.
• Run the meeting professionally.
• Build relationships.

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Using E-Mail Effectively

• Make sure that e-mail is an appropriate medium
  for what you want to communicate.
• Be sure to send the e-mail to the right people.
• Use meaningful subject lines.
• Limit the content to one main subject, and be as
  clear and concise as possible.

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Using E-Mail Effectively (contd)

• Limit the number and size of attachments.
• Delete e-mail you dont need, and dont open
  e-mail if you question (feel suspect of) the
  source.
• Make sure your virus software is current.
• Respond to and file e-mails quickly.
• Learn how to use important features.

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Using Templates for Project Communications

• Many technical people are afraid to ask for help.
• Providing examples and templates for project
  communications saves time and money.
• Organizations can develop their own templates,
  use some provided by outside organizations, or
  use samples from textbooks.
• Recall that research shows that companies that
  excel in project management make effective use of
  templates.

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Figure 10-2. Sample Template for a Project
Description
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Table 10-5. Sample Template for a Monthly
Progress Report
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Table 10-6. Final ProjectDocumentation Items
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Lessons Learned Reports

• The project manager and project team members
  should each prepare a lessons-learned report.
• A reflective statement that documents important
  things an individual learned from working on the
  project.
• The project manager often combines information
  from all of the lessons-learned reports into a
  project summary report.
• See template and sample in Chapter 3.

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Lessons Learned Reports

• Lessons learned questions
• What worked wellor didnt work welleither for
  this project or for the project team?
• What surprises did the team have to deal with?
• What project circumstances were not anticipated?
• Were the project goals attained? If not, what
  changes need to be made to meet goals in the
  future?

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Project Web Sites

• Many project teams create a project Web site to
  store important product documents and other
  information.
• Can create the site using various types of
  software.

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Developing a Communications Infrastructure

• A communications infrastructure is a set of
  tools, techniques, and principles that provide a
  foundation for the effective transfer of
  information.
• Tools include e-mail, project management
  software, groupware, fax machines, telephones,
  teleconferencing systems, document management
  systems, and word processors.
• Techniques include reporting guidelines and
  templates, meeting ground rules and procedures,
  decision-making processes, problem-solving
  approaches, and conflict resolution and
  negotiation techniques.
• Principles include using open dialog and an
  agreed upon work ethic.

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Using Software to Assist in Project Communications

• There are many software tools to aid in project
  communications.
• Today more than 37 percent of people telecommute
  or work remotely at least part-time.
• Project management software includes new
  capabilities to enhance virtual communications.
• New tools, such as instant messaging and blogs,
  can enhance project communications.